The Sunday Morning "Nobody-Asked-Me-To, But-Here-I-Go-Anyway" Concert Review:
Steve Martin, with The Steep Canyon Rangers
Calgary, Jubilee Auditorium
I have now come full circle with Mr. Steve Martin, after seeing him perform live last night. I wasn't able to see him perform his 1970's hit "King Tut" back in his initial heyday, and now I can also add that I haven't seen him perform it decades later - not even his recent terrific bluegrass update.
Minor complaint. After shamelessly invoking Mr. Martin several years ago on this blog during my whiny (desperate) "Banjo Quest", it was a thrill nonetheless to finally see live perhaps one of the biggest stars that Mrs. That Dan Guy and I have ever had the chance to enjoy. I say that based on his aforementioned decades of success in virtually every medium imaginable - so stick that in your hat if you don't agree...
On to the show! What a performance!! Seamless professionalism, stellar musicianship, and more than enough comedy interspersed to satisfy older stand-up fans - this show lived up to every expectation I brought to the building.
Well, there was the odd disappointment. You'd think that with a pedigree like Mr. Martin's, maybe Sir Paul McCartney could have shown up to perform his contribution to the latest album "Rare Bird Alert". We had to settle for the Ranger's fiddle player, Nicky Sanders - who did a fine cover, but was no Sir Paul. Incidentally, we walked out of the auditorium with Mr. Sanders, and passed on our compliments to the entire band on a spectacular show. Kept my McCartney comments prudently to myself...
I will say that those Steep Canyon Rangers won me over (not a hard-fought battle, we've seen plenty of TV appearances) - crack professionals those gentleman - and fine, good-natured foils for Steve's relentless wit.
Too many highlights in this performance to list, I'm afraid - just take my word for it, if you have a chance to catch this show live, do NOT hesitate. If you're not already a fan of bluegrass, you most assuredly will be.
And if you love Steve Martin's comic sensibilities, they are on full display from start to finish, a 2-hour process including encores.
Just not "King Tut"...
On a side note, this is now the single most expensive concert we have ever seen. Not because of the tickets, or the CD we bought before we went, or even the parking and couple of drinks we had.
No, it was my attempt to make a quick getaway afterwards, where I managed to crumple my two passenger-side doors. Most excellent...
Such is life...
Chow for now!!
4 comments:
Is our damaged car (in Mr. That Dan Guy's stubborn haste) worth the show? YES! It was spectacular! Amazing, amazing musicians. Fantastic music and a whole lot of fun! A great evening Mr.
Sorry to hear about the car but wonderful that you had a great time. Thanks for the visit. I am soon off.
I agree - a swell night out...
You are most welcome - by the way, we're missing some towels...
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